The British government is expected to announce Tuesday a significant tightening of its policy toward Israel, centered on a ban on trade in goods and certain services connected to West Bank settlements.
Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband is set to present the measures as part of what he describes as a comprehensive "reset" of Britain's relationship with Israel, according to a report in The Guardian.
The ban will extend beyond products manufactured in settlements to include certain services such as financing and advertising related to settlement activity. Implementing the goods ban may require new legislation in the British Parliament.
Until now, products from settlements have not received the tariff benefits granted to goods from Israel proper, and Britain has advised businesses to avoid economic activity in settlements. The new move, however, is expected to transform parts of this activity from a warning and recommendation into a legal prohibition.
The policy shift comes amid concerns over the E1 construction plan east of Jerusalem and what British officials describe as rising settler violence in the West Bank.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich responded to the reports by calling for the expulsion of the British ambassador "this very evening."
"We will not be a doormat for an antisemitic government, in a country conquered by radical Islam, trying to save itself from economic and social collapse by attacking Jews and the State of Israel. The British Mandate in the Land of Israel is over," the minister stated.
